


Mothers

by TheBigLoserQueen



Series: Office AU [172]
Category: Transformers - All Media Types
Genre: AU, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Human, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Cute, Explanations, Family, Family Feels, Gen, Half-Siblings, Het, Human, Light Angst, Past Character Death, Past Suicide, Siblings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-17
Updated: 2016-01-17
Packaged: 2018-05-14 10:24:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,966
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5740075
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheBigLoserQueen/pseuds/TheBigLoserQueen
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Diskdrive finds out that Bloodshed and him don't have the same mother.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Mothers

"How come you call Mommy and Daddy by their names?" 

Bloodshed couldn’t reply. He had been sitting on the couch, reading a book while Diskdrive was watching another Disney movie. He had no idea where this question even came from!

So, unable to speak, he just stared at Diskdrive, who was sitting on the floor and looking up at him with big eyes. His younger brother had come over today since Bombrush and Soundwave needed to do something at work and couldn't bring the boy with them. And since his other brothers were doing their own things as well, Bloodshed was now watching him over him. 

Thornstriker and Solara had left a little bit ago for a doctor's appointment, so now it was just the two of them. Still, he hadn't been expecting Diskdrive to ask him something like that.

Perhaps he should have though. Diskdrive, despite only being seven, was rather smart. He would definitely notice something like that and he wasn't shy. He would have definitely asked.

Still, he didn’t know what to say. He had never asked Bombrush what he and Soundwave had told Diskdrive about his family situation. He doubted that they would keep it hidden from him, Soundwave especially. She was very forthcoming about things.

“… With Bombrush, it’s just complicated,” he finally said. Diskdrive didn’t need to know about his childhood. Bombrush was a good father to Diskdrive and the little boy looked up to him. He didn’t want to ruin that image just because Bombrush hadn’t been like that for him.

“What about Mommy?”

Now what to say to that. He really should have asked them what they had told Diskdrive. But surely he knew something was different about him and Soundwave’s other kids. He didn’t look too much like them, especially with his dark skin color. But if he didn’t know, he couldn’t lie to the kid. He would eventually figure it out when he was older and he didn’t want to have him be confused when that time came.

He huffed and rubbed the back of his neck. There was really no way around this, was there?

“… Soundwave’s not my mom.”

Diskdrive didn’t say anything. He just stared at him, his eyebrows furrowing up while his face scrunched up in confusion.

He would have to be incredibly careful about explaining this. He didn’t want to say the wrong thing. And even if Diskdrive was smart, he was still a child. He would have to explain this so it was easy for a seven-year-old to understand.

“But we’re brothers, right?”

“Yes.”

“Then that means Mommy is your mommy too!”

Bloodshed shook his head. Setting his book down and shutting off the television, he moved to sit on the floor in front of Diskdrive. The boy looked so confused and even a little devastated. But he waited patiently for Bloodshed to finish explaining. He was thankful his little brother didn’t jump the gun about things.

“We have the same father,” he said. “Bombrush is my father and he’s also your father. But your mother, Soundwave, is not my mother. I have a different mother.”

His brows furrowed more, though it was in frustration rather than confusion. At least Diskdrive was starting to get it…

He reached out and gently patted his head. “We’re still brothers, Diskdrive.”

“But we have different mommies. So we’re not real brothers, right?”

“No, we’re real brothers.”

“But…”

Bloodshed huffed. He wasn’t explaining this well enough. Still, he wanted to avoid getting into explaining half-siblings and stepsiblings to the kid, thinking it might be too overwhelming.

“It’s the same with your other brothers.”

“Wha-Wha-?”

“Soundwave is your mother and their mother. But Bombrush is not their father.”

“… Is that why they call him by his name too?”

He nodded.

“… So they have a different daddy. And you have a different mommy.”

“Yes. And we’re still your brothers.”

“B-But how-?”

“It’s called half-siblings,” he said carefully. “It’s when people share one parent, but not the other parent. You and I share a father while you and your other brothers share a mother. But you and I don’t share a mother and you and they don’t share a father. So we’re your half-brothers.”

Diskdrive slowly nodded. That… made sense. They shared one parent, so that was one half. It was just like some of his math problems. And he did always wonder why his other brothers didn’t look much like him. And why his big brother didn’t look like Mommy. And she never seemed to treat Bloodshed like she treated him and his other brothers.

Bloodshed let out a small sigh of relief when the little boy seemed to finally get it. Good, he was glad that had been solved. He had been worried he would send him back to his parents and the boy would be upset and crying about not being “real brothers” with him and Soundwave’s kids. Soundwave would no doubt be furious about that. If she hadn’t told him now, she was probably waiting until he was older to explain it better.

He didn’t really know how much Diskdrive really understood, but he did seem to accept his explanation on the subject. For now anyway.

“So…”

Bloodshed looked down at the kid.

“We’re… half-brothers.”

“Yes.”

“And my mommy’s not your mommy.”

“Right.”

“… Then where’s your mommy?”

Bloodshed tensed up at the question. Diskdrive just watched him, his head titled innocently as he patiently waited for his big brother to answer.

It was a simple question. An expected one too. He probably would have asked about his other brother’s father if they were telling him this. Bloodshed knew that Diskdrive wasn’t trying to offend. He didn’t even know Pixela had existed until a few moments ago. But…

The older man gritted his teeth and looked down at the floor. Even though it had been so long since she passed away, it still hurt to think about. Pixela didn’t pass peacefully. She ended her own life, feeling as if she were a burden, feeling so miserable she just couldn’t live anymore… And she left him alone, alone with a father he hated.

It wasn’t like that anymore, but… It hurt to think about. Not as much as before, but he didn’t want to be reminded that Pixela was dead. That he would never see her again outside of photos and his memories again.

Taking a deep breath, he leaned back into the couch and rubbed the back of his neck. “She’s… not here.”

“Where does she live?”

“… In heaven, Diskdrive,” he said quietly, unable to look at the boy.

It took him a moment before his eyes widened and he looked up at the ceiling. Bloodshed’s mommy was in heaven, so that meant that she wasn’t around anymore. So he couldn’t meet her like he had hoped he could ask.

He glanced at his brother again. He looked… sad now, which caused him to frown. Maybe he shouldn’t have asked him. Not wanting to see him like this, the boy crawled up next to him and hugged his arm tightly, like how Mommy and Daddy hugged him when he was feeling sad.

“Diskdrive?”

“I’m sorry,” he said, pressing his face into his arm. “I didn’t mean to make you sad.”

Bloodshed let out a small huff and rubbed the back of his neck. What was he even doing? He was an adult and Pixela had been… gone for a long time already. Diskdrive didn’t mean anything by it either. It wasn’t like he knew why Pixela wasn’t here anymore…

He moved his hand to pat his head. “I’m fine.”

“Really?”

He nodded.

“Okay.” Then the boy pulled back from him and asked, “Do you have a picture of your mommy?”

Bloodshed paused, taking his hand from his head. “You wanna see her?”

He nodded eagerly.

If he remembered correctly, there were definitely some photo albums in the back room… Bombrush had made one of just her, so maybe he could find that one. What color was it again?

“Wait here.”

Diskdrive nodded, sitting cross-legged on the floor as Bloodshed got up and headed to the study in the back. He walked over to the bookshelf across from the door, squatting down to the lower shelves. If he remembered right, Bombrush kept all of scrapbooks here… And the one with Pixela’s photos was different from the others.

He moved his finger along the spines until it paused over a white one. A thick white spine with faded pink flowers all over it. Different from all the brown or plain white ones. He pulled it out and looked at the small card at the front.

_Pixela._

With a small huff, he pulled it off the shelf and opened it up. Primus, some of these pictures were old… There were some of his mother when she was in high school, though he wasn’t sure how Bombrush had gotten a hold of them. Maybe she had some and he put them in here, he would have to ask about it.

But as he turned the pages, there were ones when she was older, when she and Bombrush were married… There were even plenty of him as a child with her. And a few with the three of them together. Happy. Primus, these were bringing back a lot of memories…

Shaking his head, he closed it and walked out of the room. He could see Diskdrive perk up as he walked over, book in hand, before sitting down next to him. He handed the scrapbook to him and the boy eagerly looked at the cover.

“Pix… Pix-cel-la?”

“Pix-el-a,” Bloodshed said softly. Wow, saying her name was weird… He never had that issue when he said Bombrush’s name.

Diskdrive muttered the name to himself a few times. Then he nodded to himself and opened the book up to a middle page. He didn’t say anything, just looking at some of the pictures quietly. There were a few of them with Bombrush and Pixela together, but Diskdrive didn’t ask about them. He just continued to turn the pages, almost as if he were reading a book.

Finally, he stopped at one page. There was only one picture on it, one that had been enlarged and fitted for just this page. Pixela was sitting in the chair of her bedroom, with her arms wrapped around a two-year-old Bloodshed. She was looking down at him, smiling gently as she made sure she was resting comfortably.

Diskdrive pointed to the child. “Who’s that?”

“Me.”

He looked between his big brother and the picture. “But you’re small.”

“I was pretty tiny as a kid,” he admitted.

“But now you’re not. You and Daddy are the same height.”

“Right.”

Diskdrive looked back to the picture again, though his eyes drifted to Pixela again. She was very pretty. His mommy was pretty too, but Bloodshed’s mommy was… a different kind of pretty. Like Thornstriker. She was pretty like her.

“… Do you miss her?”

“I do.”                                                      

“What was she like?”

“… Kind,” he said softly. “And gentle. She always wanted the best for me. She just… She wanted me and Bombrush to be happy.”

Diskdrive nodded. So this was Bloodshed’s mommy… He was sad that he couldn’t meet her. But at least he had all these pictures of her. And Bloodshed could tell him about her if he asked. His big brother was always nice about answering his questions. Maybe his daddy would be able to tell him some things too, if he were to ask.

Maybe one day, he would be able to meet her in heaven too. If Bloodshed loved her, so could he, even if Pixela wasn’t his mommy. But for now, Diskdrive was just content with his brother patting his head as he looked at the pictures.


End file.
